The Iowa Economic Development Authority will open applications in January for the Iowa Manufacturing 4.0 grants, which aim to help the state’s smaller manufacturers remain globally competitive.
The program started in 2022 and has been run with a mix of federal and state funding. Since its inception, it has awarded $9.28 million in Technology Investment grants to 176 small to mid-sized enterprises, funding 235 projects total. In the Workforce Innovation Program, which is for mid- and large-size enterprises, the program has awarded $21.87 million to 49 companies, funding 70 projects total.
Another $2 million in Technology Investment grants will be available when applications open Monday. The funding was appropriated by the Iowa Legislature.
“The intent of the grant program is to help these manufacturers purchase either the manufacturing 4.0 or industry 4.0 equipment, or the software that would be needed to support that equipment integration into their facility through [a] wide range of projects,” said Anna Lensing, innovation team lead with IEDA.
For the Technology Investment Program, the maximum award per company is $75,000, according to IEDA documents. Lensing said companies must match that, for example, making it a $150,000 project total.
Lensing said the program has seen “unique success” with its partnership with Iowa State University’s Center for Industrial Research and Service, or CIRAS.
“As part of the application, we require an assessment be done by CIRAS, and so these experts are coming … into the manufacturing facility and evaluating what types of technology may be appropriate to help the company scale, and giving suggestions for how to implement that technology and really just have a deep knowledge of the industry 4.0 types of equipment and technology that they’re going to work with those companies,” Lensing said.
She said IEDA has received positive feedback that the assessments give the companies “direction and [a] path forward on their investments in their equipment and automation.”
The Manufacturing 4.0 grant programs have funded various technologies, including autonomous robots, collaborative robots, 3D printing, projects involving the Industrial Internet of Things, cybersecurity software, predictive maintenance software, sensor integration and wearable technology, Lensing said.
“The industry employs 14% of Iowa’s total workforce, so [it] plays a huge role in our … economy. It is why we will continue to stay focused on advanced manufacturing,” Lensing said. “We know with all of the technology and advancements in today’s world, how quickly things are moving. It is part of our role to help our manufacturers continue to compete globally with increases in the productivity and efficiency.”
Sky Factory, a business in Fairfield that creates virtual skylights and virtual windows for interior environments, received a $50,000 Manufacturing 4.0 grant.
Skye Witherspoon, CEO of Sky Factory, said the grant received went toward a $200,000 pick-and-place machine used for making lighting systems. The new machine helped increase automation and also allowed the company to further research and development, resulting in new products, he said.
“This is a really awesome upgrade for us,” he said. “The new machine that we have has allowed for a higher degree of automation, and it’s also allowed for more flexibility.”
Michael Verdon, president of David Bear Inc. and Trinity Fabricators Inc. in New Albin said he’s received two Manufacturing 4.0 grants for his business that does structural steel fabrication.
He used the first grant for $25,000 to purchase a high-definition plasma cutting system; the entire cost of the project was about $200,000, he said.
“We just replaced an old system that when we put it in in 2001 was state of the art,” he said. “Twenty years later, in five generations of technology, we were [falling] behind with that piece of equipment.”
The second grant was used to buy a different type of welding machine, he said.
“It’s the type of welding machine that allows us to process steel much more rapidly,” he said. “So we say it still requires manual effort. I still have to have a fabricator. But for instance, a small welding procedure that took maybe three minutes to perform, this piece of equipment and the operator can perform it in about 20 seconds.”
He said working with IEDA on the grant process was “slam dunk, simple, easy.”
“They’re very cooperative and they want to see businesses, particularly small businesses, succeed in Iowa.”